Broch make it two in a row

Published:13:56Monday 13 June 2016

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On a dull day at Kessock Park Fraserburgh Cricket Club made it two wins in a row, edging out Methlick by five runs in a nail bitingly close finish.

The Broch’s opening batsmen were pinned down early on, with just a single run coming off the bat in the opening overs. But Methlick’s bowlers gave away a lot of extras, and they were soon scoring at a good rate.

Fraserburgh’s issue while batting was their inability to sustain partnerships. Their longest partnership of the match lasted just seven overs, as opener Cory Bowie watched six of his teammates depart at the other end.

Bowie stuck around and was playing well, passing 50, and had guided the side to 131 when he eventually departed for 65 with fifteen overs left to play with.

Fraserburgh’s lower order then went on to score some crucial runs. Pradeep Chinta scored a quickfire 25 that included three maximums, before Colin Souter and Ryan Duthie saw out the overs undefeated, scoring 18 and 7 respectively so that the team reached a total of 188.

In what is fast becoming a trait of Fraserburgh’s bowling, they started economically, building some pressure early on where Methlick didn’t. But it wasn’t long before the away side counter­attacked.

A prolific partnership between Woodhouse (37) and Murphy threatened to take the game away from Fraserburgh, and the momentum had definitely shifted by the time the former had to retire.

That was something of a turning point, as after Woodhouse retired Methlick too struggled to form lasting partnerships. That almost didn’t matter though, as Murphy started hitting six after six, steering Methlick close to a winning total.

He hit eight 4s and four 6s in an innings of 69, but he couldn’t see the travelling team over the line. His wicket was a crucial one at an important time – Fraser Lawrance (4­41) getting him out with the help of a stunning catch by Chris Gospel in the deep.

It was down to Pradeep Chinta to bowl the final over, with the Broch needing one wicket for victory, but only being eight runs away from defeat. But Methlick could only score two singles before the ball was chipped to Lawrance at mid­on, sealing the narrow win for the Broch.

It must be said that the home team fielded very well, taking eight catches with Lawrance taking four of those on his own. And the win could also be put down to the lack of extras bowled by Fraserburgh, which totalled nearly half of Methlick’s.

It was a good win for Fraserburgh, and it will undoubtedly boost confidence all the more. This Saturday they will be looking to use that to their advantage as they look to avenge their cup defeat away at Kemnay­Kintore.

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